Grand Gesture

April 14, 2014

On April 17 the University of Illinois at Chicago will open Curtis Granderson Stadium, a new baseball facility funded by a $5 million donation from the Mets' outfielder, the largest known one-time donation by an athlete to his alma mater. Besides serving as a home to the UIC Flames, for whom Granderson played from 2000 to '02, the field will host inner-city youth league games as well as events run by Major League Baseball's Reviving Baseball in Inner Cities initiative and Urban Youth Academy Programs. Granderson is not the only athlete to dig deep on behalf of his former school.

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Curtis Granderson

UIC

$5 million

Carmelo Anthony

Syracuse

$3 million

Dwayne Johnson

Miami

$3 million

Ndamukong Suh

Nebraska

$2.6 million

Steve Smith

Michigan State

$2.5 million

Drew Brees

Purdue

$2 million

Charles Woodson

Michigan

$2 million

LeBron James

St. Vincent-St. Mary

$1 million

Eli Manning

Ole Miss

$1 million

Peyton Manning

Tennessee

$1 million

THEY SAID IT

"I just tried to hit it as hard and as far as I could."

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